Busy Living
by throwingsomeshade
Summary: A series of one shots and short multi-chap stories revolving around a group of friends living together in an apartment complex. Many hints to possible romance- how could there not be when Amy has the cutest hedgehog in the building living right above her?
1. Chapter 1: Roommates

This story takes place in an AU. As of right now, it's going to be more of a collection of short stories (I guess a bunch of one shots?) rather than one major plot. Most of them will just be one chapters worth, but I also plan to have some connect. Although it will be further explored later on, the basis of this world are as follows: Mobians (anthropomorphic animals) and humans reside on mobius, splitting the population about 50/50. Amy is living in an apartment with her newer roommate Silver. Residing in the same building, she meets Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Cream, Blaze, Rouge, Sticks, Vector, Espio and Charmy. There are a lot of things to learn about the colorful people living in the complex.

Please enjoy my first chapter and feel free to leave a review and tell me what you think.

Roommates.

"You're Silver?"

The boy holding the door open heaved a long sigh, "Not this again." He had only heard two words from the pink hedgehog and could already feel defeat coming his way. "Yes, I'm Silver," he began to list in a robotic manner, as if he spoke these exact words a hundred times, "and yes, I'm a boy."

The girl, Amy, adjusted her bag on her shoulder. She missed the bus and had to walk almost a dozen blocks to check out her potential roommate. By the time she entered the building, her purse weighed down on her like a ton of bricks.

"I was really expecting you to be a girl," she admitted, covering up her shocked tone.

Silver crossed his arms over his chest, "Well you would be wrong. You assumed, and you know what happens when you assume."

Amy looked him over. He definitely did not look like a girl. He had long quills that stretched far behind and above him- very common for male hedgehogs. He was dressed lazily in just a pair of sweatpants. It was socially acceptable for a variety of species to either be dressed or go sans clothing. Not many chose to only be half dressed, but even then it wasn't weird.

His most distinguishable feature, other than his spiked bangs, was the way his golden eyes contrasted his silver fur. Amy guessed his parents didn't know what to name him until they saw him.

"You wrote in your bio that you like to be in touch with your 'inner moon goddess,'" she retorted, skeptically eyeing him.

"I'm spiritual, so what?"

"Half of the rooms in your sample pictures were very pink and feminine looking."

"That's sexist; men can like pink too. Besides, that was my ex roommate," he deadpanned. "She's kind of the devil so I changed it all when she moved out." Silver then looked Amy head to toe. "If you're interested, though, then maybe I should've left it that way."

Amy narrowed her eyes. They had seemed like a good match over email, but this first encounter was giving her doubts. "Just because I'm pink doesn't mean everything I own has to be pink."

"Is pink your favorite color?" he asked with a childish grin.

Amy rolled her eyes, choosing not to answer beyond a glare.

"Well?" Silver further pressed, not letting her off the hook.

"Yes it is, but that doesn't mean I want to stare at it all day long," Amy snapped. "Maybe this won't work," she admitted, knowing that they didn't get off to a good start.

"Wait!" Silver caught her arm as she turned to leave. "Look, I know I'm not what you expected, but I still think you should at least check out the space. Believe it or not, you have been the nicest person to come by so far." He shivered at the memory of the many people who have stopped by already. One of them was an older woman with a knife collection who refused to leave after the house tour.

Amy ignored the back handed compliment. She peered over Silver's shoulder into the room. It definitely looked different from the pictures online, in a good way. She could tell that the paint was fresh as the smell drifted into the hallway. She briefly wondered if any of his brain cells have been killed.

"Fine," she agreed, not too reluctantly.

Silver let go of her arm and stepped back, holding the door open for her.

Amy slowly wandered into the room, turning her head slowly around the room. She appreciated the mostly neutral colored furniture. It wasn't a strain on the eyes and matched well. There was a splash of different shades of blue along the curtains and pillows on the couch.

"This area used to be pretty much a rainbow. After the devil moved out, I changed it all. Even got rid of the pink walls you spoke of," Silver explain, leaning against the island.

"Did you decorate it yourself?"

He shrugged, "Mostly. I like interior design, but I did have a few of my friends from the building help out."

Amy glanced over at the kitchen. It was smaller than what she was used to in her last home. Rather than any traditional dining table, rotating stools lined the counter Silver sat at. On the other side was a small space with just enough room for the fridge, sink and oven. It was just enough to get whatever job in the kitchen done.

Silver then showed her the location of the bathroom and his own bedroom. "Your's would be right across the hall," he explained, opening the door to reveal a bare room. There was a full sized bed pushed into the corner, with a large pair of windows right next to it. "You get the fire escape right outside your room, so if there's ever an emergency, you'll be the first out so don't lock me in," he tried to joke.

Amy nodded her head, letting the corner of her mouth twitch. She leaned towards the window, observing the view of the city. She was leveled with the roofs of the surrounding buildings that blocked her view from seeing far into downtown. She thought that it could be a better sight, but wasn't too bothered by it.

Before she could turn away, a hand sprung up, hitting the window right in front of her face. Amy let out a yelp, leaping back and knocking into Silver in the process.

Before them stood an angry hedgehog. Her fur was a bright red and shiny, similar to a fire truck. Her long quills were frayed and curled in different directions. Amy would have guessed that she hadn't ran her fingers through them in days.

"Shit," Silver cursed, stepping forward to put an arm in front of Amy.

"Who is that?" she asked, now more confused than scared.

"Remember that devil ex-roommate I mentioned?"

"Don't ignore me, Silver!" she cried through the window. Her eyes, an icy blue, peered at Amy. "Are you trying to replace me?" she gasped and half shrieked offendedly.

"April, you were kicked out three months ago!"

She then looked over the room, gasping once again, "Did you throw out all my stuff? And you changed the color? Are you trying to hurt me?"

Silver groaned, dragging his hand down his face. "How many times are we going to have this conversation?"

Amy's phone suddenly went off, interrupting the tension. She reached into her bag, checking the caller ID. She contemplated for a second not answering, but she knew that was worse than picking up the call. "Sorry, I have to take this," Amy excused herself from the room.

As she left, she heard Silver threaten, "I'll call back up again. You know how this goes."

Amy continued walking out of the apartment as she answered. "What do you want?" she was less than enthused.

"_When are you coming home?_"

She winced at how loud the voice came through the speaker. Amy leaned against the wall right outside the door. She glanced up and down the long hallway, seeing no one else before she went on to speak.

"I told you a hundred times that I'm never coming back. I'm eighteen, I can make my own decisions now without you using me."

"_How can you just up and leave your family! You owe us you ungrateful little brat!_"

"'Owe you?'" Amy let out a humorless snort. "What about all the dinners you owe me? Or clothes? Or showers with warm water?"

"_You're alive today. I didn't have to take you in but I did out of the kindness of my own heart. You could've been in a worse home or out on the streets but you weren't. I took care of you. I raised you."_

"You're kidding, right?" Amy wondered in disbelief. "You didn't raise me and you aren't my family. I raised myself and all those other poor kids that are stuck with you. You're just angry that you can't use me as a punching bag to dump all your crap on."

"_You'll regret that once you realize you need me more than you want to admit. Don't forget, I still have your savings._"

"Exactly, it's mine. Not like you haven't already used half of it anyways." By this point, Amy was shaking with anger. Her cheeks were red as her face heated up.

"_If you want it, you know what you'll have to do_."

"I'm not coming back," Amy held her ground.

"_Whatever. Have fun rotting on the streets alone. I don't even want you if you're going to be this way._"

There was a click as the line went dead.

Amy let her arm hang limply at her side. Hot tears swelled in her eyes before rolling down her cheeks. She wasn't sad. She was frustrated. She hated having to deal with her old life that she was trying hard to detach herself from.

Amy grabbed her purse, muffling her screams into it. She slid down the wall, resting her forehead on her knees. Once she started, Amy couldn't bring herself to stop crying. She couldn't tell what emotions she was exactly feeling at this point.

At first Amy was angry with her foster mother. Then she felt guilty for leaving her siblings behind. She thought about how she had to care for them, but she also dreamed of the day she could just worry about herself. Being an adult and on her own was lonely. She currently resided in what was basically a scary closet by herself. Amy figured that the only apartment in her price range that supplied decent living wouldn't work out with Silver and his crazy ex-roommate. She would be stuck living in her current residence.

"Are you okay?"

Amy snapped her head up at the voice. She was embarrassed that someone had caught her sobbing to herself. Round, green eyes stared her down, full of confusion. She noted his bright, royal blue fur, an uncommon color for hedgehogs. She found it to be particularly appealing on the eyes.

Before Amy could respond, Silver stuck his head into the hallway. His eyes brightened when they landed on the new presence, "Sonic! Thank Chaos you're here. She's in the other bedroom." He suddenly dropped his demeanor when he noticed Amy on the ground, "Are you okay?"

"Uh- I'll handle April," Sonic gave an awkward smile as he made his way into the apartment.

Amy picked herself off the ground, not seeing the hand Silver offered. "I better get going," she adjusted the bag on her shoulder. "It was nice meeting you," she held her hand out.

Silver stared at her hand as if he had never seen such an object before. "You aren't really gonna leave now, are you?" He met Amy's glossy eyes, noticing her red stained cheeks. It was obvious that she had been crying only a moment ago. "Who was that on the phone? Work? Annoying family?"

"I should just leave," Amy ignored his second question. "We haven't really gotten along well and your ex roommate might try to kill me in my sleep." She turned to walk away, hanging her head in shame.

"Hold up!" Silver quickly made his way to stand directly in front of her. "I know I don't know you and we just met, but there's something you should know about me: I'm kind of dumb."

"Okay?" Amy drew out, not understanding what he was trying to get at.

"I usually can't take a hint or fully read situations," he continued, "that's one of the reasons April hates me now. But I can tell that you're upset. It doesn't take a genius to notice."

Amy just stared at him, unsure of what to say. He was right. He can't take a hint.

"If you would like to get anything off your chest, now would be the time," Silver prompted.

She let out a long sigh. Amy dropped her bag to the ground as she leaned her back against the wall. Silver followed her in the same manner, patiently waiting for her to speak.

"It wasn't work, or family," she chewed on the inside of her cheek, trying to get rid of her nerves. "I don't have a real family. That was my foster parent. I know that there are a lot of good foster families out there, but I got stuck with the bottom of the barrel. I was so excited to get away the second I became an adult. All that I've learned since moving out is that I'm alone."

"Wow," Silver mumbled after a moment. He awkwardly cleared his throat, almost choking and coughing on air. "Ya know, I never knew my birth parents. Neither did most of my friends in the building. You should really consider moving in. We'd be happy to add you to the family."

"I don't think-"

"Then don't," Silver cut her off. "I know it was all weird between us with you being sexist and all-" Amy rolled her eyes- "but we got over that fast and you still checked out the rooms. Plus, once the restrainer order goes through we won't have to worry about April again."

"Okay," the two turned as Sonic approached them, dusting off his hands. "She's gone now."

"What did you do?" Amy asked with worry. By the looks of it, he was acting as if he had just gotten his hands dirty.

"Just had a conversation with her," he shrugged nonchalantly. "April has always hated me. No idea why."

"Maybe because you always threw your clothes in with her laundry the second she walked away," Silver snorted.

Sonic defensively raised his hands, "I was conserving both money and the environment."

"Mooched off of her groceries."

"She didn't label anything so how was I supposed to know?"

"How about that time you caught her hair on fire?"

"Okay, I get it," Sonic groaned. "I should go see what Tails is up to." He spun on his heel and began walking backwards down the hallway. "Good luck with the roommate hunt!"

Even though he was speaking to Silver, his eyes remained on Amy's. Her breath hitched slightly as he winked and disappeared into the stairwell.

When Amy turned back to Silver, a wide smirk was plastered across his face. "The building does come with a few perks," he teased.

She narrowed her eyes, but decided to drop the topic. "Want to finish giving me that grand tour?"

Silver's smile transformed into one of genuine happiness. "Really?" he hopefully wondered.

Amy nodded her head with a hum.

"Well, if you follow me," Silver opened up the front door, "I can show you the closet where grandma-with-a-knife locked herself in."

Amy never thought she would hear that sentence in her entire life, but she didn't hate it. In fact, she was wonderfully surprised.


	2. Chapter 2: Neighbors At War

**Back with another chapter. Thank you for the responses and follows after my first chapter, your support has been great! **

**Another thing is that these chapters don't necessarily happen right after one another. So this one occurs a little after Amy moves in. **

**Another another thing, sorry about the delay in posting to this. I had to finish up one of my stories and then get my next big project rolling. I don't know how often I'll be updating, but I'm hoping for twice a month. These are meant to be just chapters of prompts that pop into my head, so I'm not certain of where this will go.**

* * *

Neighbors At War.

"Are you kidding me?" Amy glanced over at the kitchen clock. She rolled her eyes as if the very numbers offended her themselves. "It's ten in the morning and I have to listen to this?"

Silver's head perked up from his cereal bowl. "What?" he groggily asked, not paying much attention to his surroundings.

"Listen," she ordered. A moment of silence passed between the two before a soft moan could be heard.

Silver scrunched his face. "Maybe someone is eating some really good pizza," he suggested. More noises were heard through the walls, prompting him to add, "With stuffed crust."

Amy rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right," she sarcastically agreed. "I don't want to have to hear every time our neighbors get it on."

Silver took a big spoonful of flakes to shovel into his mouth. He chewed loudly a couple times until he was capable of speaking. "If these walls could talk," he swallowed mid sentence, "they would tell tales of the hot horrors that go on in 613."

"I don't want to know," Amy side glanced at him.

Silver spun around on the stool, facing the wall in the direction of the racket. "These walls aren't _that_ thin," he began, "do you think they would mind if we kindly told them to shut up?"

"It's worth a shot." Using the palm of her hand, she banged on the wall rapidly. The voices on the other side promptly stopped. "Keep it down!" Not wanting to sound mean from raising her voice, she hastily added a "Please!"

They remained still for a minute, waiting for any signs.

A sudden rap at the door ruptured through the air. Silver let out a squeak as he fell backwards off the chair.

The two stared at one another, neither daring to open the door.

Another knock came to the door, louder and demanding their attention. "I know you guys are in there," a nasally called to them. "Open the door, Silver!"

His eyes widened. Amy glared at him, who still remained lying on the ground.

"Go answer the door," she harshly whispered.

He shook his head. "I am _not _doing that." Silver crossed his arms as if that would lock him down.

"Why not, it's your neighbor."

"It's your neighbor too."

"She knows your name."

"She terrifies me."

Another rhythmic knock interrupted their conversation. "You know I can hear you guys, right?"

Amy rolled her eyes, giving in upon the realization that her roommate was also a coward. With a deep breath, she firmly grasped the knob before swinging the door open. She forced a fake smile to her face. "Hello," she greeted with sudden confidence, "what can I do for you?"

A less than happy cat stood before her. Her long, silky hair was pushed over her shoulders, exposing a butterfly tattoo on one side. Her arms were impatiently crossed over her chest. "You got a problem?" she asked with a piercing snarky voice.

Amy quickly shook her head no.

The cat looked her up and down, not showing any indication of impression. She then glanced around Amy, spotting the boy on the floor. "Hey, silver."

"Hi, Monica," he responded in a monotone voice. She had been living next door for as long as he could remember. Although the two weren't close by any means, he had been there through her many boyfriends that have come and gone. Out of everyone that had lived on the floor, she was definitely the loudest. Music would pound throughout the night and fights would practically be on show for all the other residents. No one said anything because there was no getting rid of her. It was impossible when her uncle owned the building.

"New roommate?" Monica nodded her head to Amy, who thought it was rather obvious. Silver didn't bother answering either. "The last one was prettier," she needlessly continued.

"Okay," Amy cut in before she was more attacked. "What do you want?"

"What do I want?" Monica passively aggressively wondered, pretending to take the time to think it over. "I want you to mind your own business, missy. What I do in _my_ apartment is nothing for you to listen in on."

"Well it's kind of hard when you're practically waking up the whole building."

Silver winced at Amy's response. He never warned her about Monica. Once he had finally gotten on his neighbor's good side, he had almost forgotten about her save for the occasional ruckus. Now his new roommate was disturbing that peace.

He mustered up the courage to swiftly move over to Amy's side. Silver draped his arm across her shoulders while pulling out his most charming smile for Monica. "Ladies, can't we all just get along here?"

A leering smile slowly spread across Monica's face. "No harm is going on here," she sweetly replied. She spun on her heel and slowly walked back towards her door. Silver and Amy watched her retreat. "Watch yourself, new girl," she threatened before disappearing into her own apartment.

Silver sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Great," her murmured.

"I'm not gonna get jumped or anything, am I?" Amy wondered as she closed their door behind them.

He shrugged, "Probably not, but that's the least of our concerns." Amy glared at him, taking offense but not further pushing it. "Monica, once you get on her bad side, is not an easy person to live next door to."

"What do you mean?"

Silver stared off into the distance. His mind drifted off to a dark time that haunted his past. "She can hold a grudge," he murmured.

…

Amy stared hard at the sentence in front of her, not taking in any of the meaning. Studying for school was really proving to be a drag. Her head pounded in annoyance with every zap heard through the walls. She groaned, knowing that the noise was intentional.

"You did this," Silver passingly commented as he made his way to the front door.

"Where are you going?" Amy looked at him hopefully, finding any reason she could to tag along.

"The guys need me for something," a.k.a no girls allowed.

Amy pouted on the couch as the door slammed shut. For a moment, she was left alone in the silent buzz of the apartment. It was still until the TV from next door resumed its blare through the walls. It was if a thin curtain separated the two rather than concrete.

Amy threw her pillow at the wall, knowing nothing good would happen if she actually knocked. She crossed her arms and let out a huff while glaring in the direction of the offending ruckus.

"This means war."

….

"Okay, just like we practiced."

"But we didn't practice," Tails noted while half raising his arm from his spot in line.

Amy ignored him. It was only hours earlier that Monica had made her first attack on their peaceful residence. Since then, Amy had gone around the floor, and to any other apartments above or below that might be affected, explaining her predicament and apologizing for any potential noise. Most of her responses were positive. It was clear that other people were tired of the moody cat that lived next door.

Along with her explanation, she was able to recruit a few friends to help her out. Cream, who lived across the hall was happy to come over, bringing her roommate Blaze. She was also able to bother Silver and his friends to come downstairs. It was a bonus that Sonic just so happened to be a part of the group. Knuckles reluctantly tagged along with the group, after Silver promised to buy some late night takeout afterwards.

Silver held up a shiny triangle, tapping it as hard as he could with the stick. A hum buzzed through the air, not having much impact on the group. "Why did I get stuck with the lamest instrument on the planet?"

Amy scrutinized him for a moment. "Don't call it 'lame' or else I'll stick you with a used recorder," she threatened.

She cleared her throat and stood in line with the rest of the group. All had various objects and instruments that would be able to be heard through the walls. Save for Silver of course, who got stuck with the triangle after trying to use Amy's blow dryer as his choice of weapon.

Amy held on to a pair of pots. Cream brought her trumpet from high school. Blaze claimed to be a talented yodeler, no one was going to question it. Sonic and Tails were sharing a keyboard Tails had made, making sure it was turned up at full volume. And lastly, Knuckles brought along with him a vacuum. Amy appreciated his use of resources.

Amy counted up to three before signaling a thumbs up. The group began playing at once. Knuckles took it a step further and began vacuuming the wall.

After a few moments, the group stopped and waited for any reaction. Not a second later a few curses were heard on the other side.

"She's going to kill us," Silver muttered with a sudden loss of emotion. On the contrary, the rest of the group found the situation funny.

"No she won't," Sonic tried to reason.

An aggressive bang shook the door. Everyone jumped with a yelp. One high pitched scream stood out. Amy expected it to be Cream or Blaze, but was not entirely surprised when she turned to find Silver to be the culprit.

"Would you calm down," Knuckles growled. He rolled his eyes, pulling the door open himself.

Monic pushed past him, not allowing him to get a single word out. She stomped right up to Amy, forcefully jabbing her hand into her shoulder. "I know you're behind this, you brat," she spat.

To Amy's defense, Sonic stepped between the two girls, using his height to assert power over the situation. He looked down at Monica with a bored frown. "Now, now," he playfully scolded her as if she was a child, "we all know that if anyone is the noisiest attendant here, it's you."

Monica looked around the group, seeing that she was clearly outnumbered. She scoffed, knowing that no one was on her side. "Whatever," she walked back to the doorway, barely giving Knuckles time to step out of the way. "I'm too busy to deal with you. I'm having a few people over tonight and we're gonna be as loud as we want. Bother me again and I'll have my uncle evict all of you."

As quickly as she arrived, she disappeared back into her own dwelling, announcing it with the slam of the door.

"Well that was a bust," Amy deadpanned. She flopped down onto the couch, glaring at her school books. She had yet to make a dent in her assigned work.

Silver rang his triangle, "Now that we are done here, I would like to call for the resurrection of guys night."

The boys stood up, filing out of the room. Sonic stopped at the end, glancing back at Amy who remained in her self pity. He gave her a half smile, "Don't worry too much." She looked up at him, realizing that he was speaking directly to her. They had not talked to each other much since she had moved in, she was still embarrassed from when he found her crying in the hallway. "People come and go in this building. Usually it's the good tenants that stay for awhile. Having bad neighbors is only temporary, even if they're related to the owner."

Amy smiled back. Nice and handsome. Part of her was wishing she had insisted on crashing boys night.

He was gone before she could think of anything to say other than "thanks."

Amy forgot she wasn't alone when Blaze slid next to her. "What are you studying?" She nodded her head to the spread of books.

"I couldn't tell you," she was only half joking. There was a vague notion that the topic was related to geology.

"Do you need help studying?" Cream kneeled down on the ground across the table. "I don't really know this stuff but I could quiz you."

Amy never figured that she would iron her newfound friendships by having a spontaneous study, but she figured it was worth a shot. "If you want to. I don't want to force you guys to do something boring."

"Nonsense," Blaze gracefully stood up. "I'll get us snacks."

The girls stayed over for an hour before returning back to their own rooms.

Amy noticed the chattering hums from next door grow over time. So Monica was having more than a few people over. Despite just meeting that day, Amy wouldn't be surprised if she had invited extra people just to spite her. She let out a defeated sigh, deciding that she will need to invest in headphones soon.

….

Amy stirred. She groggily opened her eyes, not remembering closing them in the first place. She took in her surroundings, noting that she must've fallen asleep on the couch. It was still dark in the room.

She hadn't realized that it was quiet until a knock on the door disturbed the peace. Amy furrowed her eyebrows, wondering who it could be at this hour. She glanced at the kitchen clock on her way to the door. It was one in the morning.

She realized she forgot to check who it was through the peephole by the time the door was already swinging open.

Amy wasn't surprised. She really wasn't. If anything, she felt slightly confused. She leaned forward to glance down the hall. A long line of people were trailing out of Monica's apartment.

Said cat was glaring at her. If looks could kill, Amy would've been in her grave by now.

"I hope you're happy," she sneered. "You really wanted me kicked out?"

Amy only raised an eyebrow, not understanding what was going on. She still felt foggy from just waking up. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Monica snorted. "Don't play dumb. Who else would call in a complaint?"

"Wasn't me," Amy enforced. She had actually managed to sleep through the noise. Her best guess was anyone else living in the same building.

"Monica!"

Both girls turned their heads to see a middle aged man approach them. His feline resemblance gave away that the two cats were related. They shared a narrowed eye shape and fur color. Monica's uncle.

Although Amy had to submit paperwork to him to move in, she had never had the chance to see him face to face.

"You are in no position to be bothering more people than you already had. You're lucky the young man called me and not the cops." He looked over at Amy, giving her a sympathetic smile before returning his attention to his niece. "The state that apartment is in is ridiculous. How can anyone bear to live in there?"

Amy could only imagine the inside of a rotting room with dirty dishes and molding food scattered about. She figured he was using a dramatic effect to add power to his lecture, but the image remained on her mind.

Monica was pulled away by her uncle. They trailed after the crowd as the last party goers left. Amy remained in her place, watching them until they disappeared.

She didn't want to ask who exactly had complained, figuring that it might get them a death threat from Monica. She knew it couldn't have been Silver. He was too much of a chicken.

Amy headed back inside. She checked Silver's room. Seeing that he had not returned, she figured that he was spending the night at Sonic and Tails' place. This usually happened when they stayed out late together.

She laid on her bed, sleepily gazing out the window. Her eyes began to drift shut. They flickered open for a second, her believing she saw a shadow pass by, before gluing completely shut.

It really could have been anyone.


End file.
